Project Regeneration: Why Reuse Makes Sense for Woodstock

At the west end of Tinker Street, there’s a group of buildings many people in Woodstock already know well.

Set across about three acres are six structures: the old Woodstock Library, the Lasher House, two historic barns, a former funeral parlor building, and a mid-century apartment house. Surrounded by mature oaks and maples, and backed by the Catskills, it’s a part of town that feels both central and a little set apart.

These buildings aren’t just visually distinctive, they’ve each been part of daily life here in different ways over generations. For a lot of people, they hold real memories. The question now is what happens to them next and how to do right by what they’ve meant to this town.

Photo of Woodstock Library circ. 1956 showing the Graeser addition and 1955 Library Fair Building

Early photograph of original building, taken sometime after it was conveyed from Victor Edith Laster to the Woodstock Club

Project Regeneration is a locally led effort to bring these buildings back into active use in a way that fits Woodstock today.

Led by social entrepreneur Lizzie Vann and a team working closely with the community, the plan is to update the site for carbon-neutral, multi purpose use. That includes reasonably priced rental housing, coworking space, and places for members of the community to use for their own purposes. It also includes expanding the property’s green space and making more of it accessible to the public, with native plantings, ponds, and small permaculture orchards.

The goal is straightforward: keep what’s here, take care of it, and make sure it continues to serve the town.

Six Buildings, Six Histories

Each building on the site comes with its own story and together, they tell something bigger about Woodstock itself.

The old library at 5 Library Lane is probably the most familiar. It began in the late 18th century as a simple residence, and in 1812 became a medical practice under Dr. Larry Gilbert Hall. Some of its Federal-style details like the pilasters and frieze marked with stars representing the 18 states at the time, are still visible today.

In 1927, the Woodstock Club purchased the building and converted it into the town library. It was expanded and updated several times as the town grew, including in 1967 and 1987. For decades, it served not just as a library, but as a gathering place, hosting events, conversations, and the annual Library Fair on the lawn.

As Janine Fallon Mower, Assistant Town Historian and lifelong resident, has said, having the library there was “part of the synergy of a small town.”

When the library moved to a larger facility on Dixon Avenue in 2025, the building was left vacant. The current plan is to preserve it and convert it into a dozen or more small, efficient apartments, keeping the structure intact while giving it a new role in the community.

Architect Joseph Vescio, who is leading the design work, describes the building as shaped more by Woodstock’s “layered artistic and rural heritage” than by any formal institutional style.

Janine Fallon Mower, Assistant Town Historian and lifelong resident, said the library was 'part of the synergy of a small town'

To the west sits the Lasher House at 100 Tinker Street, built in 1884 by James Nelson Lasher. It’s a detailed Victorian home with Italianate and Queen Anne influences, reflecting the success of a family that was deeply involved in local business and agriculture.

Behind it, the Lashers operated a funeral home for well over a century. For many in Woodstock, that building holds personal meaning, it’s where people came to say goodbye to friends and family across generations. As Janine Fallon Mower puts it, “Lasher’s Funeral Home is where we all paid our last respects to lifelong friends and relatives. It’s sort of sacred ground and it’s part of how we have all experienced death and dying.”

That history hasn’t gone unnoticed. Woodstock Town Historian Richard Heppner has described the Lasher House as one of the more historically recognizable buildings in town, and a “beloved structure.”

The funeral home closed in 2020, and the buildings now include a mix of retail space and apartments. After refurbishment, they are expected to continue serving as a multipurpose residential and commercial space, remaining part of everyday life in town.

Between the Lasher House and the library are two barns, originally used for farming operations and later for the funeral business. Built using traditional mortise-and-tenon construction from hemlock and chestnut, they’ve held up remarkably well for structures now over 140 years old.

According to Vescio, they are both substantial and well-built, with surprisingly little water damage given their age. These buildings could be adapted for a range of uses, including small businesses or community-focused space.

The former funeral parlor building presents a different situation. Built over a seasonal stream, it has experienced significant structural deterioration over time. In this case, preservation isn’t feasible in its current form, and the building will need to be rebuilt. It will likely serve as a design and project hub for the site.

Finally, 106 Tinker Street, a mid-century colonial revival building constructed in 1959, will remain as a two-family residence. It will be upgraded to improve energy efficiency, comfort, and overall performance.

Why Take This Approach Now

There are a number of ways this property could be handled. The buildings could be redeveloped individually, left vacant, or replaced entirely.

Project Regeneration takes a different approach, treating the site as one connected place.

By planning the buildings together, it becomes possible to share infrastructure, preserve more open space, and reduce the overall environmental footprint. It also helps ensure that whatever happens here stays in scale with the surrounding area and feels consistent with the rest of Woodstock.

Demolishing these buildings would mean losing something that can’t really be replaced, not just the structures themselves, but the layers of history tied to them. Reusing them gives that history a way to carry forward, while also addressing real needs today, especially the need for more accessible housing.

Adaptive Reuse: A Practical Way Forward

Adaptive reuse simply means updating existing buildings for new purposes instead of demolishing them.

It reduces construction waste, preserves the energy already embedded in older materials, and limits the environmental impact of new development. But in a place like Woodstock, it’s also about continuity, about keeping the town recognizable to the people who live here.

As Joseph Vescio explains, it’s about approaching design more thoughtfully, questioning what actually needs to be built, and looking for ways to work with what’s already there.

Sometimes that leads to small but meaningful decisions. At the old library, for example, the roots of a large sugar maple have damaged part of the building’s plumbing. Rather than removing the tree, the plan is to adjust the building, relocating the affected systems and preserving both the structure and the landscape.

Continuity, Not Replacement

Woodstock has always changed, but usually in ways that build on what’s already here.

This project follows that pattern. It’s not about freezing these buildings in time, and it’s not about replacing them with something disconnected from their surroundings. It’s about allowing them to adapt in ways that make sense now, while still feeling like Woodstock.

Done carefully, that kind of regeneration keeps places active, useful, and connected to everyday life, rather than letting them fade out or be replaced by something that doesn’t quite belong.

At its core, this is about something simple: taking care of what we already have, and making sure it continues to matter.

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Project Regeneration is Woodstock’s answer to those questions and an invitation to imagine what’s possible when a small town chooses to act with intention.

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Email the team on info@project-regen.com.